What motivates you to travel?

For the past few years, Eric and I have traveled mostly as a couple. We sold just about everything we owned, moved to Thailand, explored Southeast Asia together, moved back to the U.S. and have been making trips ever since. Our love for travel, though, began way before we met. For each of us, family trips were an important part of our childhood and a way to connect with immediate and extended family members.

When my cousins and I were all young, we would meet up a few times a year. At our grandparent’s house in Hilton Head, South Carolina, at our house in Virginia, or sometimes at a further, more adventurous destination. I was fortunate to take family trips to Colorado, Montana and even the Bahamas. For my grandparent’s 40th wedding anniversary, we rented a house on a tiny island in the Bahamas and had a tropical Christmas in a house on a cliff stuffed with 14 people. Last year we stuffed those same 14 people and a few new additions into a beach house in Charleston, South Carolina.

While routines have changed, alcohol, spouses and friends have been added to the mix, and perhaps there are fewer cheerios, these trips remain essentially the same. We’ve replaced drizzle castles with sunbathing with a book, but we still make fluffernutter sandwiches and occasionally watch James Bond. Most importantly, everyone makes an effort to set aside this time to just be together. These trips are always a treat because what vacation isn’t? But, moreso because they are a chance for the family to connect and spend some uninterrupted time together despite living around the country and having busy lives. We tend to think of travel as a way to experience new things and broaden our horizons, but it is also a way to connect with loved ones and spend some quality time without distractions of work or other responsibilities.

While my family tended to end up at coastal destinations, Eric grew up surrounded by snow-covered mountains and ski-enthusiasts. His family would frequently escape to Breckenridge Resort in Colorado to spend quality time together and relax in the natural beauty of the area. Breckenridge offers an environment to escape from the busy hustle and bustle of daily life and create lasting memories with the ones that you love. This uninterrupted family time allowed his family to connect while enjoying skiing and fun-filled activities that they would remember fondly for years. What better way to bond than by mastering an extreme sport together!Whether you take a trip for a day, a weekend or a week, vacation with family builds lasting memories and could infect your kids with a love of travel. What motivates you to travel? For us, connecting with others is always at top of mind, but especially when we get the chance to spend time with family.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Vail Resorts. The opinions and text are all mine.

Eric

e.fulton89@yahoo.com

Eric left Washington, D.C. to travel the world starting with Chiang Mai, Thailand. He enjoys peaty scotch, long walks on the beach (or up mountains) and most sports or activities with potential risk of injury or death.

What motivates me? There are many I can think of, however the primary reason is the strong desire to see what’s the other side of the world looks like, as well as the excitement to discover new places. 🙂

I think it’s so great that you are still doing these trips! Really loved your story! 🙂 What motivates me, is to discover a new destination, together with my husband, and the local people. To have a trip made of nothing else than improvisation and spontaneous decisions… It’s our thing, we’re a great travel team, love other cultures and it helps to let go of the daily grind (working at the office,…) 🙂

March 26, 2017 at 3:19 am

Evanne

I actually just moved to Thailand, as well! I was in the southern parts of Thailand, but Chiang Mai is one of my absolute favorite places in SE Asia. Anyways, experiencing new cultures and meeting new people is what motivates me to travel!

March 26, 2017 at 8:09 am

Evanne

That is sweet that you are motivated to travel to spend time with family. I have no close family members, so I definitely travel for other reasons. I mostly prefer to travel to experience new things, learn, and have adventures, especially culinary adventures.

This is such a beautiful story and I love your writing! For me, travel is in my heart, and exploring new cultures and history and people is what drives me to explore more – that and making memories with my loved ones!

Great article, hmm I think I travel similar to you. I spent my summer on the east coast beaches with family trips, and the winters in Colorado at the ski resorts, and that sealed my love of travel. I think now we travel to create memories with our kids, like I remember from my childhood!

Your post boosted the travel geek in me. Travelling has always been a part of my life and i travel because its like fresh air to me. You cannot be trapped for a long time, you need to let go and explore the world

March 27, 2017 at 7:46 am

tatumskipper

What motivates me to travel is the unknown. That adrenaline feeling of going to a new place, city or country and not knowing what to expect. I loved your write up about your family and what motivates you! All are equally important and I love the fact that you are passing the travel bug onto your family because that builds so much character and educates better than any school can!

Eric and Evanne are frequent travelers currently based in Virginia where they run a luxury bed & breakfast. They love exploring destinations near and far and sharing their tales of luxury and adventure.